TAMPA, Fla. — Allegations of sexual abuse against big stars like Michael Jackson and R. Kelly are prompting some parents to think about how they can protect their own children.
Dr. Stacey Scheckner is a licensed psychologist with a specialization in children, adolescents, and families. She explains how "parental grooming" sometimes helps predators win over the parent's trust and gain access to their children.
Scheckner said there's really no reason an adult needs to be completely alone with your child.
"If an adult wants to be your friend, you need to talk to mommy and daddy about that first, because adults need to be with other adults and children need to be with children."
Scheckner gave a couple of key points parents should keep in mind when it comes to adults in their child's life.
- Ask yourself why this adult is in your child's life. How did you meet them? It shouldn't be random.
- Talk to your child about boundaries, both physical and conversational, so your child can spot when someone is getting too close or too personal.
- Trust your instinct and if you think something is off, look into it even if it offends someone.
"A lot of people don't want to ruin the coach's reputation, they don't want to slander an adult or teacher, a lot of the kids I worked with were feeling bad, this us someone we know, this is someone who babysits for us, someone who we go on field trips with, they felt really bad."
Dr. Veronique Valliere, a psychologist who was interviewed on the CBS This Morning show put it like this:
"Pay attention if someone's paying too much attention to your child."
How to explain the graphic news coverage to your children
Scheckner also offered advice for parents trying to explain some of the sensitive and graphic news coverage surrounding R. Kelly and Michael Jackson.
Scheckner says to ask your kids three questions:
- How did you hear about it?
- How does it make you feel?
- What do you think about it?
This gives you the chance to do more listening than talking. If your child presses beyond that you can explain why a person might commit a sex crime.
"Explain it like some people are sick in their head just like you get sick physically," suggested Scheckner.
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